Threatened post office saved after locals pay running costs

A village post office facing imminent closure has been saved after locals
agreed to pay a monthly subscription to cover its running costs, in what is
believed to be a national first.

The Post Office and village store in HenhamPhoto: Peter Lawson/Eastnews Press

8:16AM GMT 15 Nov 2011

The post office counter in the picturesque village of Henham, Essex was set to close for the final time next month after funding from a three-year council scheme came to an end.

But now, in what has been described as "the Big Society in action", more than 40 villagers have agreed to stump up their own money each month in the form of a paid subscription.

The generous residents from the 1,500 strong parish are paying from as little as a £1 per month to keep the vital service up and running three mornings a week.

The "overwhelming" reaction to the suggestion of subscriptions means that the post office - which is based in the village shop and costs £12,000-a-year to run - will remain open for at least another year.

The village sub-post office shut in July 2008 as part of a Government closure programme affecting 2,500 branches across the country.

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But it reopened four months later in the volunteer-run community shop after Essex County Council brokered a deal Post Office Ltd.

Henham's sub post mistress Bessie Hayden, 77, predicted that the village's unusual idea could now spread across the country to other communities.

She said: "It was not a surprise to me when I was told that the post office could stay open as the people in this village know all about helping each other.

"We have 50 volunteers who give their time to work at the village shop, that's the kind of community spirit we have here.

"It would have been a disaster if the post office had closed because the older citizens don't have cars and they would have had to catch buses to the village of Elsenham to get their pensions and then stand in the cold for an hour waiting for a bus to come back."

Mrs Hayden said there had been a "wonderful reaction" from residents as they discovered the post office counter would now remain open.

She said: "This is definitely the 'Big Society' in action in Henham and I am hoping that it will continue beyond this first year."

About a third of the post office costs will be covered by the subscriptions with the remainder of the cash coming from profits made by the community's shop.

Money raised by the parish council's precept on council tax bills could also be used towards the running costs.

Details of the proposal were set out in an open letter from Christopher Swain, chairman of the Henham shop management committee, which was sent to every household in the parish.

It stated: "The reality is that we cannot expect any financial support from central government, local authorities or Post Office Ltd (POL). We are therefore thrown back on our own resources as a community."

And speaking about the idea, Mr Swain said: "It is scandalous that we have to fund it entirely locally but that is the reality of the situation and there has been a great response.

"The first person came into the shop a day after the letter went out and offered a pound per month which was so positive.

"Some people are giving £5, some £10 and some much more and that has really enabled us to be where we are now.

"In the case of the smaller amounts, I am hoping people will bring it into the shop, but we are setting up a system for people to make bank payments.

"I won't be going round the village like the old Prudential man."

The post office currently opens five days a week but that will drop to three mornings from 9am to Noon under the new scheme.

Mr Swain added: "If this works, it will be very gratifying - the post office network is just as vital as local shops across the country and they are part of our national sense of identity."